I don't get into the conventions. It just seems like everyone cheers for things that should be common sense. And while the president is a role that I respect, I do not put him on the level of deity. These are people, just like us. They may have more opportunities in life than others, but they eat and breathe the same air and food (sometimes) that we do.
I think the audience at these things border on lunatics. I understand that they are supposed to rally the parties, but it just seems so scripted that it is hard to see their excitement for anything more than fanaticism. I could also be severely jaded...
I watched someone get interviewed that was asked the question, "Why do you support Sarah Palin?" Her answer? "Because she believes in America." I'm sorry, but doesn't cut it for me.
And then I saw the group from Texas (I assume it was Texas because they were all wearing straw cowboy hats) do some chant where they would take their caps off and point them in the air (or towards something) and then put it back on their head. They repeated this for quite a while.
When I was a kid we'd go to tractor pulls. They were fun.....AND LOUD! We'd watch big trucks with big wheels jump 6 cars at a time. There were multiple events as well. You'd have locals bring their trucks in and they would hook them to a trailer that had a certain weight on it that as you drove with it attached the weight would move forward making it more difficult for the truck to move. The drivers had to make it to a certain mark to qualify. We'd eat nachos and cheese and it was a blast! What I remember most about those times (oh yes, I went to more than one) was the chants we'd do when we were there. One side would yell "FORD" and the other side would yell "CHEVY". I was also about 11 years old.
I have become quite a fan of Jon Stewart. His cynicism really comes through in his show and it is something that I relate to. A lot of times we (or maybe I) feel like the US is going to hell in a hand basket it is nice to be able to laugh about what idiots some of those we've elected truly are.